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  <section id="add-executable">
<span id="command:add_executable"></span><h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id1" role="doc-backlink">add_executable</a><a class="headerlink" href="#add-executable" title="Permalink to this heading">¶</a></h1>
<nav class="contents" id="contents">
<p class="topic-title">Contents</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><p><a class="reference internal" href="#add-executable" id="id1">add_executable</a></p>
<ul>
<li><p><a class="reference internal" href="#normal-executables" id="id2">Normal Executables</a></p></li>
<li><p><a class="reference internal" href="#imported-executables" id="id3">Imported Executables</a></p></li>
<li><p><a class="reference internal" href="#alias-executables" id="id4">Alias Executables</a></p></li>
<li><p><a class="reference internal" href="#see-also" id="id5">See Also</a></p></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</nav>
<p>Add an executable to the project using the specified source files.</p>
<section id="normal-executables">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id2" role="doc-backlink">Normal Executables</a><a class="headerlink" href="#normal-executables" title="Permalink to this heading">¶</a></h2>
<div class="highlight-cmake notranslate"><div class="highlight"><pre><span></span><span class="nf">add_executable(</span><span class="nv">&lt;name&gt;</span><span class="w"> </span><span class="p">[</span><span class="no">WIN32</span><span class="p">]</span><span class="w"> </span><span class="p">[</span><span class="no">MACOSX_BUNDLE</span><span class="p">]</span>
<span class="w">               </span><span class="p">[</span><span class="no">EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL</span><span class="p">]</span>
<span class="w">               </span><span class="p">[</span><span class="nb">source1</span><span class="p">]</span><span class="w"> </span><span class="p">[</span><span class="nb">source2</span><span class="w"> </span><span class="p">...]</span><span class="nf">)</span>
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>Adds an executable target called <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;name&gt;</span></code> to be built from the source
files listed in the command invocation.  The
<code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;name&gt;</span></code> corresponds to the logical target name and must be globally
unique within a project.  The actual file name of the executable built is
constructed based on conventions of the native platform (such as
<code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;name&gt;.exe</span></code> or just <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;name&gt;</span></code>).</p>
<div class="versionadded">
<p><span class="versionmodified added">New in version 3.1: </span>Source arguments to <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">add_executable</span></code> may use &quot;generator expressions&quot; with
the syntax <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">$&lt;...&gt;</span></code>.  See the <span class="target" id="index-0-manual:cmake-generator-expressions(7)"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../manual/cmake-generator-expressions.7.html#manual:cmake-generator-expressions(7)" title="cmake-generator-expressions(7)"><code class="xref cmake cmake-manual docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">cmake-generator-expressions(7)</span></code></a>
manual for available expressions.</p>
</div>
<div class="versionadded">
<p><span class="versionmodified added">New in version 3.11: </span>The source files can be omitted if they are added later using
<span class="target" id="index-0-command:target_sources"></span><a class="reference internal" href="target_sources.html#command:target_sources" title="target_sources"><code class="xref cmake cmake-command docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">target_sources()</span></code></a>.</p>
</div>
<p>By default the executable file will be created in the build tree
directory corresponding to the source tree directory in which the
command was invoked.  See documentation of the
<span class="target" id="index-0-prop_tgt:RUNTIME_OUTPUT_DIRECTORY"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_tgt/RUNTIME_OUTPUT_DIRECTORY.html#prop_tgt:RUNTIME_OUTPUT_DIRECTORY" title="RUNTIME_OUTPUT_DIRECTORY"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_tgt docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">RUNTIME_OUTPUT_DIRECTORY</span></code></a> target property to change this
location.  See documentation of the <span class="target" id="index-0-prop_tgt:OUTPUT_NAME"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_tgt/OUTPUT_NAME.html#prop_tgt:OUTPUT_NAME" title="OUTPUT_NAME"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_tgt docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">OUTPUT_NAME</span></code></a> target property
to change the <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;name&gt;</span></code> part of the final file name.</p>
<p>If <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">WIN32</span></code> is given the property <span class="target" id="index-0-prop_tgt:WIN32_EXECUTABLE"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_tgt/WIN32_EXECUTABLE.html#prop_tgt:WIN32_EXECUTABLE" title="WIN32_EXECUTABLE"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_tgt docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">WIN32_EXECUTABLE</span></code></a> will be
set on the target created.  See documentation of that target property for
details.</p>
<p>If <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">MACOSX_BUNDLE</span></code> is given the corresponding property will be set on
the created target.  See documentation of the <span class="target" id="index-0-prop_tgt:MACOSX_BUNDLE"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_tgt/MACOSX_BUNDLE.html#prop_tgt:MACOSX_BUNDLE" title="MACOSX_BUNDLE"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_tgt docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">MACOSX_BUNDLE</span></code></a>
target property for details.</p>
<p>If <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL</span></code> is given the corresponding property will be set on
the created target.  See documentation of the <span class="target" id="index-0-prop_tgt:EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_tgt/EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL.html#prop_tgt:EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL" title="EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_tgt docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">EXCLUDE_FROM_ALL</span></code></a>
target property for details.</p>
<p>See the <span class="target" id="index-0-manual:cmake-buildsystem(7)"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../manual/cmake-buildsystem.7.html#manual:cmake-buildsystem(7)" title="cmake-buildsystem(7)"><code class="xref cmake cmake-manual docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">cmake-buildsystem(7)</span></code></a> manual for more on defining
buildsystem properties.</p>
<p>See also <span class="target" id="index-0-prop_sf:HEADER_FILE_ONLY"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_sf/HEADER_FILE_ONLY.html#prop_sf:HEADER_FILE_ONLY" title="HEADER_FILE_ONLY"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_sf docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">HEADER_FILE_ONLY</span></code></a> on what to do if some sources are
pre-processed, and you want to have the original sources reachable from
within IDE.</p>
</section>
<section id="imported-executables">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id3" role="doc-backlink">Imported Executables</a><a class="headerlink" href="#imported-executables" title="Permalink to this heading">¶</a></h2>
<div class="highlight-cmake notranslate"><div class="highlight"><pre><span></span><span class="nf">add_executable(</span><span class="nv">&lt;name&gt;</span><span class="w"> </span><span class="no">IMPORTED</span><span class="w"> </span><span class="p">[</span><span class="no">GLOBAL</span><span class="p">]</span><span class="nf">)</span>
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>An <a class="reference internal" href="../manual/cmake-buildsystem.7.html#imported-targets"><span class="std std-ref">IMPORTED executable target</span></a> references an
executable file located outside the project.  No rules are generated to
build it, and the <span class="target" id="index-0-prop_tgt:IMPORTED"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_tgt/IMPORTED.html#prop_tgt:IMPORTED" title="IMPORTED"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_tgt docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">IMPORTED</span></code></a> target property is <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">True</span></code>.  The
target name has scope in the directory in which it is created and below, but
the <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">GLOBAL</span></code> option extends visibility.  It may be referenced like any
target built within the project.  <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">IMPORTED</span></code> executables are useful
for convenient reference from commands like <span class="target" id="index-0-command:add_custom_command"></span><a class="reference internal" href="add_custom_command.html#command:add_custom_command" title="add_custom_command"><code class="xref cmake cmake-command docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">add_custom_command()</span></code></a>.
Details about the imported executable are specified by setting properties
whose names begin in <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">IMPORTED_</span></code>.  The most important such property is
<span class="target" id="index-0-prop_tgt:IMPORTED_LOCATION"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_tgt/IMPORTED_LOCATION.html#prop_tgt:IMPORTED_LOCATION" title="IMPORTED_LOCATION"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_tgt docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">IMPORTED_LOCATION</span></code></a> (and its per-configuration version
<span class="target" id="index-0-prop_tgt:IMPORTED_LOCATION_&lt;CONFIG&gt;"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_tgt/IMPORTED_LOCATION_CONFIG.html#prop_tgt:IMPORTED_LOCATION_&lt;CONFIG&gt;" title="IMPORTED_LOCATION_&lt;CONFIG&gt;"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_tgt docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">IMPORTED_LOCATION_&lt;CONFIG&gt;</span></code></a>) which specifies the location of
the main executable file on disk.  See documentation of the <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">IMPORTED_*</span></code>
properties for more information.</p>
</section>
<section id="alias-executables">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id4" role="doc-backlink">Alias Executables</a><a class="headerlink" href="#alias-executables" title="Permalink to this heading">¶</a></h2>
<div class="highlight-cmake notranslate"><div class="highlight"><pre><span></span><span class="nf">add_executable(</span><span class="nv">&lt;name&gt;</span><span class="w"> </span><span class="no">ALIAS</span><span class="w"> </span><span class="nv">&lt;target&gt;</span><span class="nf">)</span>
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>Creates an <a class="reference internal" href="../manual/cmake-buildsystem.7.html#alias-targets"><span class="std std-ref">Alias Target</span></a>, such that <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;name&gt;</span></code> can
be used to refer to <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;target&gt;</span></code> in subsequent commands.  The <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;name&gt;</span></code>
does not appear in the generated buildsystem as a make target.  The
<code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;target&gt;</span></code> may not be an <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">ALIAS</span></code>.</p>
<div class="versionadded">
<p><span class="versionmodified added">New in version 3.11: </span>An <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">ALIAS</span></code> can target a <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">GLOBAL</span></code> <a class="reference internal" href="../manual/cmake-buildsystem.7.html#imported-targets"><span class="std std-ref">Imported Target</span></a></p>
</div>
<div class="versionadded">
<p><span class="versionmodified added">New in version 3.18: </span>An <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">ALIAS</span></code> can target a non-<code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">GLOBAL</span></code> Imported Target. Such alias is
scoped to the directory in which it is created and subdirectories.
The <span class="target" id="index-0-prop_tgt:ALIAS_GLOBAL"></span><a class="reference internal" href="../prop_tgt/ALIAS_GLOBAL.html#prop_tgt:ALIAS_GLOBAL" title="ALIAS_GLOBAL"><code class="xref cmake cmake-prop_tgt docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">ALIAS_GLOBAL</span></code></a> target property can be used to check if the
alias is global or not.</p>
</div>
<p><code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">ALIAS</span></code> targets can be used as targets to read properties
from, executables for custom commands and custom targets.  They can also be
tested for existence with the regular <span class="target" id="index-0-command:if"></span><a class="reference internal" href="if.html#target" title="if(target)"><code class="xref cmake cmake-command docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">if(TARGET)</span></code></a> subcommand.
The <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;name&gt;</span></code> may not be used to modify properties of <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">&lt;target&gt;</span></code>, that
is, it may not be used as the operand of <span class="target" id="index-0-command:set_property"></span><a class="reference internal" href="set_property.html#command:set_property" title="set_property"><code class="xref cmake cmake-command docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">set_property()</span></code></a>,
<span class="target" id="index-0-command:set_target_properties"></span><a class="reference internal" href="set_target_properties.html#command:set_target_properties" title="set_target_properties"><code class="xref cmake cmake-command docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">set_target_properties()</span></code></a>, <span class="target" id="index-0-command:target_link_libraries"></span><a class="reference internal" href="target_link_libraries.html#command:target_link_libraries" title="target_link_libraries"><code class="xref cmake cmake-command docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">target_link_libraries()</span></code></a> etc.
An <code class="docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">ALIAS</span></code> target may not be installed or exported.</p>
</section>
<section id="see-also">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id5" role="doc-backlink">See Also</a><a class="headerlink" href="#see-also" title="Permalink to this heading">¶</a></h2>
<ul class="simple">
<li><p><span class="target" id="index-0-command:add_library"></span><a class="reference internal" href="add_library.html#command:add_library" title="add_library"><code class="xref cmake cmake-command docutils literal notranslate"><span class="pre">add_library()</span></code></a></p></li>
</ul>
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<li><a class="reference internal" href="#">add_executable</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#normal-executables">Normal Executables</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#imported-executables">Imported Executables</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#alias-executables">Alias Executables</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#see-also">See Also</a></li>
</ul>
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